The Christmas Visitor
by melistories
Summary: Ireland, Christmas 1918. The Great War is over but the troubles at home are still going strong. Bella's daughter thinks it is a fairy man they have found unconscious in the snow. Bella just hopes he isn't English. But no matter what, she isn't going to leave him outside to die during a snowstorm a few days before Christmas.
1. Chapter 1

**The Christmas Visitor ~ Chapter One**

Glossary:

 _Bean Sidhe:_ Banshee

 _Daidí na Nollaig_ : Father Christmas/Santa Claus

 _Nollaig_ : Christmas

 _magairli_ : testicles

 **County Cork, Ireland**

 ** _December 22_ _nd_ _, 1918_**

"Oh Mammy, there's a fierce rout outside tonight!" Bridie said as she looked out of the cabin window. The clouds were so dark and thick that there was no moon, and the air was so cold the rain had turned to icy snow. "What do you think the fairies are doing?"

"They are at home putting more peat on the fire and getting their children to bed where 'tis warm."

"Mam?" Eamon called softly from the bed that took up a fair corner of the room.

"Yes, love?"

"That's not the Bean Sidhe I hear, is it?" Eamon was referring to the wailing of the wind outside their cabin.

"No dearest. That is only the wind, I promise."

Eamon's eyes were wide as he stared at her, but he seemed to think her answer could be trusted.

"Is Daidí na Nollaig coming tonight?"

"Soon, but not tonight. Nollaig is still a few more days yet."

"Okay, Mam." With that, Eamon rolled over and promptly fell asleep. It always made Bella laugh when he did that. It reminded Bella of their da, his ability to quickly fall asleep was really the only good thing about him in the end.

"Will you go off to bed now!" Bella said to Bridie, but she laughed as she said it. The weather was awful, and it didn't often snow in Ireland, so she couldn't blame her daughter for being fascinated. This just made the children more excited for Christmas but Bella really needed Bridie to go to sleep so she could get back to sewing the doll she was making for her.

"I think I see a fairy out there right now," Bridie said quietly.

"Oh, do you? Bella asked with amusement in her voice. Bridie saw fairies everywhere, just like her Gran. Bella was more of the practical sort.

"He's riding a horse, but he isn't sitting up. I think he's hurt."

"Well, maybe he is hunched over because he is cold. I'm sure even the fairies aren't immune to this weather. Now," Bella said as she took Bridie's shoulders and gently pushed her towards the bed she shared with her brother, "time for bed."

"All right Mammy," Bridie let out a big yawn as she crawled into bed and snuggled into Eamon. "But will you check on the fairy to make sure?"

"Yes my dear, now close your eyes. Mammy loves you."

"I love you too, Mam," Bridie's sleepy reply was soft and distant.

Bella sat in the rocking chair by the fire and sang a song to make sure her children slept peacefully before she dared pull out the doll she had been working on for Bridie's present. She was lucky to work for Lady Cullen up on the hill even if she was thought of as English and people held it against her. She and Doctor Cullen had been in Ireland longer than Bella had been alive and they were good to her and her children. Bella was sure Jaime was rolling over in his grave at the thought of Bella working for the enemy, but his prejudices and stupidity had gotten him killed and she still had a family to feed. It was his bitterness that killed him in the end, taking other lives with him, and while Bella didn't like most English soldiers she decided long ago that she would get to know people before making any decisions. That mentality meant that, unlike many other people around her, she still had a bit of food on the table and peat on the fire. And scraps of cloth with which to make her daughter a doll.

As Bella sang she moved to the window to look out at the storm. She couldn't remember the last time the weather was this bad. Eamon was going to love his present of a sled that Rose's husband had furnished out of a large, flat piece of driftwood. _That Emmett could work magic with wood, he could,_ Bella thought to herself _._ At first Bella had thought it was a silly idea but Emmett had explained that it was actually for the boy to pull along the sand at the beach since he liked to collect things so much. But now, with all this snow, she knew Eamon would get proper use of such a gift. If the snow lasted, of course.

Out in the storm, Bella thought she saw movement, but she quickly dismissed it as one of Bridie's fairy stories. However, the wind changed direction and a break in the swirl of snow revealed what looked like a man lying on the ground.

Quickly Bella pulled on her coat and boots and ran out of the cabin. There was a man there, and what looked like blood on the snow.

"Sir," Bella said as she gently tried to shake the man awake. "Sir, can you hear me?"

No answer. Hoping that the bit of warmth she felt under his collar meant he was still alive, she thanked the snow for making it easier for her to drag him into the cabin.

Once inside she shut the door and grabbed a towel to start drying him. The first thing she noticed was that he was really tall – or, at least he looked long laying there on the cabin floor. He also looked English, and that would be sure to get tongues wagging. Still, nobody should be outside on a night like this, and she wasn't going to let anybody freeze or bleed to death in this cold.

Next she needed to bandage his head. Thankfully she had a basket of rags nearby that had been cleaned recently. She gently dipped one into the kettle over the fire, then washed the blood off the back of his head.

"That's not such a bad cut, sir," She said, even though she suspected he couldn't hear her. His skin was burning hot, so she knew he wasn't dead. Sick and feverish, but not dead.

Once that was done, she knew the only thing she could do was to tuck him into bed with the children. Bella didn't like that idea at all, but she couldn't let him sleep on the cold stone floor.

"I just hope whatever you have can't be caught. If you make my children ill, I'll kill you myself." Bella whispered softly in his ear. Might as well let him know where she stood now. She had a hot poker by the fire and wasn't afraid to use it.

With much effort and strength on her part, Bella was able to get the strange man out of his wet coat, pants, shoes and socks and into the bed. She was thankful that the children could sleep through almost anything. But then Bridie rolled over and opened one eye. "It's the fairy man," She said before snuggling into him.

Bella stood there and stared at the scene in the bed before her. In this light, the strange man did look a bit like one of the Fae. Even in the dim firelight, Bella could tell that his skin was as pale as hers, and his hair colour looked like autumn leaves. As she stared, the man turned his head and opened his eyes, looking directly at her. They were so green they reminded her of the grass after a summer storm. But as quickly as it happened, those eyes rolled back into his head, and he was asleep once more.

Bella shook herself from her thoughts and leaned over to whisper in his ear.

"You had better not be one of the Fae either because you cannot have my children and take them to live underground. I'll cut off your magairli before I allow you to do that."

Satisfied that even fairy men wouldn't want to lose their testicles, Bella stared at the soup on the fire. It wasn't the best, but money was tight for everyone these days. The big war might have just ended, but the battle was still being waged at home. Still, she unwrapped the lovely piece of salt pork that she had been saving for their Nollaig dinner. If she was going to nurse this strange man through his fever and back to health, he was going to need it. She threw it into the soup and added more water to make it lighter. Then she went outside and filled a bowl with snow. Moving her rocking chair next to the cot, she dipped a rag into the rapidly melting snow, wetting it. Then she placed the cloth against the stranger's forehead and hoped that she could help bring down his fever.

It was going to be a long night.

~TCV~

Edward was sure he had died.

He was sure of it because he could not understand the scene around him. There was a beautiful woman singing softly to him as she put a cool cloth on his head and a child snuggled into the side of him. He often had dreams like this during the war – especially when the loneliness was too much to bear. He would dream of a wife and family of his own. But the room was all wrong – in none of his other dreams were they ever living in such a dark cave. The woman in his other dreams wasn't as beautiful as this one either, and he couldn't understand the words she was singing.

"Hush," she said to him. "Go back to sleep and pray you aren't English when you wake up."

Confused and exhausted, Edward fell back into a restless slumber.

* * *

 **A/N** : Hello everyone. I know many of you are waiting for an update on _**Double Stroller**_ but I started this Christmas story last year when I was so sick and I really wanted to finish it. Hopefully writing this little tale will be the kick I need for _**Double Stroller**_ to start talking to me again. I did a lot of research when I started this story last year but since I wasn't actually in Ireland during the Christmas of 1918 I'm pleading artistic license and a big imagination for all the facts I have wrong.

This story will publish every day until the 24th with a break for Christmas and return on the 26. It will (most likely) only be eight chapters long. Thanks so much to **SunflowerFran** for all her encouragement and editing skills and to **May T. Brown** for making me a beautiful banner with the image that helped inspire this tale from the book _The Wee Christmas Cabin of Carn-na-ween_ by Ruth Sawyer and illustrated by Max Grafe (that story has nothing to do with this story, it's actually quite depressing as far as Christmas stories go).

This story is a Christmas present to my Mum and my sister. And to all of you for your love and support over the past year.

Happy Holidays! Or, as our Irish Bella would say: _Nollaig Shona Dhuit_


	2. Chapter 2

**The Christmas Visitor ~ Chapter Two**

Glossary:

 _Daidí na Nollaig_ : Father Christmas

 _Faigh amach an leaba_ : Get off the bed

 _cailleach_ : witch

 _ _Maidin mhaith__ _: Good morning_

 _ _Nollaig Shona Dhuit__ _: Happy Christmas_

 **County Cork, Ireland**

 _ **December 23**_ _ **rd**_ _ **, 1918**_

"Mammy," Bella could hear a little voice pulling her back to wakefulness.

"Mammy, the fairy man is in our cot." Bella opened her eyes to see Bridie sitting up in bed between the stranger and her brother, both of whom were sound asleep. The stranger's fever had broken in the breaking dawn, and Bella had put down her rag and rested her head on the back of her rocker.

"He isn't a fairy man Bridie," Bella said as she massaged her neck. "He's just a man who had an accident."

At this point, Bridie had gotten out of bed and gently tucked her brother in to let him sleep. Eamon was a bit of a beast in the morning, so both mother and daughter felt it best to let him sleep for as long as he needed.

"Who is he, Mam?"

"I don't know my girl, I found him in the snow."

The rest of the morning passed quietly. The strange man continued to sleep. Eamon got up eventually and was not happy about having a man in the house. He was only a toddler when his father died, and he hadn't had much experience with men other than Emmett. The ones he did meet were usually older men who would come courting Bella thinking they could get some free housekeeping and a warm body in their cot. All the young men had gone off to war or were busy fighting the war at home.

Eamon, who didn't talk much, kept scowling and talking about English soldiers under his breath. Bella wasn't sure how much Eamon understood of his father's death but it didn't matter. There was a definite us versus them mentality in the village.

Normally, Bella would have to go to the big house on the hill to work for a couple hours for Lady Cullen, but there was no way she could go out in this storm. Bella knew Lady Cullen would understand and she hoped she would be okay. Lady Cullen might be old and used to having people serve her, but she was no eejit. She could definitely take care of herself for a day and then tomorrow she would be leaving to visit her sister for the holiday.

Around late afternoon, Bella was knitting in her rocker and watching Eamon stare longingly out the window at the snow, when she heard Bridie talking.

"Hello fairy man, I've been waiting for you to wake."

"Um, hello?" The strange man said.

"You have a funny voice," Bridie grinned up at her mam, she had been sitting on the cot staring at the fairy man waiting for him to wake up. "See Mam," she said loudly, "I told you he was a fairy."

Bridie turned to the stranger. "Mammy says the English don't have enough imagination to be fairies so you must be one because you don't sound English and you are so pretty. I like your eyelashes. You're even prettier than Rosalie, and she's the prettiest girl in the village except Mam of course."

"Bridie!" Bella said, embarrassed at her girl's rambling. "Faigh amach an leaba!"

"Yes Mam," Bridie said, suitably chastised as she removed herself from the bed.

"How are you feeling, sir?" Bella said as she stood over the cot and looked down at the stranger.

Edward recognized the woman from his dreams, and the small girl as the one who was snuggled into him.

"You're real?" His voice was scratchy and parched. But Bridie was right, he definitely wasn't English.

"You're American?" Bella said with surprise.

"Um, yes."

"Here, can you sit up a bit?"

With gentle assistance, Bella sat the man up in the cot and handed him a cup of broth.

"Drink this, slowly, I don't know what happened to you or how dehydrated you may have been before I found you."

Edward took the offered cup with shaking hands, sipping slowly. It was the best thing he had tasted in months, and he wasn't just comparing it to Army food. He had gone through London before making his way to Ireland after the war ended and eaten in some fine restaurants. Maybe it was because he was so thirsty.

"Do you have any reason for being outside my home, bleeding from the head and feverish, two days before Nollaig?"

"Null-ig?"

"Christmas."

"Oh. Um. Things are a little fuzzy right now," he said as he touched his head. "I was on a horse and remember being thrown. I also remember thinking I was crazy to go out in this weather, but I had somewhere I needed to be. But I wasn't feeling well, and I must have gotten worse as I rode."

"Where do you need to be?" Bella asked.

"I'm going to see my grandmother before going back to America. I've never even met her, but my father asked since I was close."

"Close?"

"Well, closer than America." The stranger let out a big yawn and lifted his hand to his head. "Did you say I was bleeding?"

"Yes, from your head."

"That explains the headache."

Eamon, whose head had been going back and forth between the man and his mam as they talked, finally got the courage to speak.

"Are you a cowboy?" He asked quietly. If the cabin hadn't been so quiet, with only the sound of the fire for noise, one might have not heard.

Edward was starting to fall asleep again and Bella was helping him to lie back down.

"No, son. I'm a doctor. I always wanted to be a cowboy when I was a little boy."

Eamon stared at him with a small smile on his face. He wanted to be a cowboy too.

Bella sat at the small table peeling potatoes. She needed to add some more to the soup, especially if she had another mouth to feed. She was tempted to add the cabbage but she had been saving things for the feast, and she wanted to make colcannon. It wouldn't be fancy but it would be something the children loved and hadn't had in a while. Thankfully, Lady Cullen had gifted her with some nice flour, and she had some caraway seeds left so she could make them the traditional Nollaig cake. Only one though, not one for each of them. It would have to do. This year, more than ever, she wanted to make the holiday cheerful for the children. They might not remember their father all that well but the death of their Gran in the spring had been hard on them. Hardest on Bella though, she missed her mother something fierce. Sometimes she thought of taking the children and moving to America herself. She couldn't do it while the war was on, but really, nothing was stopping her now. However, Lady Cullen needed her, and she was grateful to have a job.

A pounding on the door pulled Bella from her revelry. Emmett walked in without waiting for an answer.

"Bella, Rosie sends some..." Emmett's words trailed off as he noticed a man sleeping in the cot.

"Bella?"

"I found him in the snow last night, feverish and bleeding from the head." The strange man didn't stir as the two people stood over him, talking.

"He's a fairy," Bridie said as she came up to Emmett. The large man picked her up so they could talk face-to-face.

"Is he now, Miss Bridget? And how do you know that?"

"Look at him. He's too pretty to be anything else and he talks funny."

Emmett guffawed loudly.

"He's not a fairy; he's a cowboy from America!" Eamon couldn't help but add his opinion.

"Bella?"

"Well, I still don't know much about him. He did wake up for a while and take a little broth, but he was well weak and fell asleep quickly. He is American, though. I didn't get his name, but he said he was a doctor and was going to visit his grandmother before going back to America."

"Are you sure?"

"Too sick and weak to lie if you ask my opinion."

"Well, he certainly got found by the right woman. Nobody nurses like our Bella. Rosie sent me with a bit of fish."

"Did she!" Bella's eyes lit up. Fish for tomorrow night would be a dream.

"She did. It's frozen; I left it outside the door. It'll be safe until tomorrow. I'll clear a path to the peat and bring some in for you too."

"Oh, Emmett, you don't have to do that."

"Shut up you. If it weren't for your care my Rosie would have died with that last wean. We will keep doing whatever we can. Can't let the village cailleach fend for herself."

Bella shook her head. "Please don't let people hear you say that. I'm hardly a witch. A little common sense mixed with medical knowledge and suddenly people are afraid. Not as half afraid as they were of my mother, though."

"True, true. But they still came to her with their ailments."

"Well, her and Doctor Cullen when they weren't showing their prejudice against him."

~TCV~

Once again, the children were asleep; Bridie snuggled into the stranger. Bella was close at hand in her rocker putting the final touches on the doll. Tomorrow the children were expecting Daidí na Nollag and Bella didn't want to disappoint them. And now, with a bit of fish for dinner things were turning out to be grand.

Except for the fact that there was a strange, sick man in her cot.

Bella looked up to find the stranger looking at her.

"Oh, you're awake are ye?" She asked as she got up to get some more broth out of the pot and a cup of water.

"Yes. Um, where am I again?"

"Well, you're in my cabin, sleeping with my children." Bella smiled at him, and he couldn't help but smile back.

"It does appear so, doesn't it? I would like to sit up, but I'm afraid to disturb someone." He said this looking down on Bridie's dark curls nestled into his side.

"They sleep the sleep of the just, you needn't worry."

Bella helped the man up in cot and handed him the water. "Small sips now."

"I know. I'm a doctor remember?" He smiled again. "Are you a nurse?"

"Nay. But I have a bit of the healing from my Mam. And I was friends with the local doctor before he died so we talked a lot. With the wars, there were always people around needing to be mended."

"Wars? There is more than one?"

"There is around here."

"Oh, of course. You're talking about the trouble between the Irish and the English."

"Yes."

"My name is Edward by the way."

"Oh! I guess that should have been one of my first questions."

"Well, maybe it wasn't as important as figuring out if I was a fairy or a cowboy."

"True. My children do not lack for imagination. I'm Bella."

"Well Bella, I believe you saved my life." Edward put his hand out with the implication that Bella put hers in it. Bella felt a warmth spread up her arm as they shook hands. "I was feeling awful, but I set out from town anyway, and the horse didn't like the weather and threw me. I must have banged my head on something and was knocked unconscious."

"That is what it seems like. You said you were heading to your grandmother's house? Does she live around here?"

"I think so. I'm not quite sure where 'here' is, but they told me in town if I followed the road to the big house on the hill I couldn't miss it."

"Lady Cullen? Is that your grandmother?"

"Yes. I'm Edward Cullen."

"Another Doctor Cullen?"

"The third in fact. I guess we aren't a very creative lot. My father is a doctor as well. He had a falling out with his parents when he left for America, and they haven't kept in contact very well. But with age, and the war, he asked if I would come and check on her."

"She will be so pleased."

"So you know her then?"

"Aye, very well. I work for her. Old Doctor Cullen was a good friend to our family. Some people haven't been kind to them lately because of the troubles, but they have been here for so long it seems wrong to blame every English person for what is going on around us."

"So my grandfather has passed then? That was the doctor you spoke of?"

"Yes, he died a couple of years ago. My mother took care of him when he was ill. She and Lady Cullen were good friends in spite of the differences in their social standing."

"Well, I will get out of your hair and your home in the morning then if you would be so kind as to point me in the right direction."

"Oh but tomorrow is the day before Nollaig, and she is off to the big city to visit her sister for a few days."

"Perhaps you can point me back in the direction of town, and I can find a room at the pub?"

"I think, Doctor Edward Cullen the third, that you might be stuck with us. Things close right down around here for the holiday. And you still don't look well enough to travel anywhere."

"No, I suppose I'm not." Edward could admit to himself that the thought of staying in this small room for Christmas did not displease him at all. "Um, I do have one place I need to go if you don't mind Bella, could you point me in the direction of your washroom?"

"Oh," Bella felt as though something dropped in her stomach. She had never regretted her poverty more than she did at this moment as this refined man, grandson to Lady Cullen, was sitting their staring at her with his bright green eyes. "You'll have to use the privy out back, or there is a pot under the cot."

"Ah." Edward could see she was uncomfortable. "No worries, I did just fight in a war. This place is like a first class hotel compared to what I have seen."

"But not, I suspect, compared to your life back home?"

"No, but we make do with what we have, don't we," Edward spoke as he got out of bed but he swayed on his feet, still unsteady from his illness.

"Are you sure you can make it. I would hate to have to drag you through the snow again." Bella joked to make light of the situation. She knew how fragile a man's ego could be when they weren't feeling well.

"I just got up too fast. How long have I been here?"

"About twenty-four hours now."

"So it would be December 23rd then?"

"Aye, that's right."

"I'm sorry to intrude upon your Christmas with your family Bella."

"Christmas is for sharing, right? The more, the merrier."

"And your husband?"

"Long gone." Bella didn't want to elaborate more than that. Edward understood. The war had taken from all of them.

After Edward had bundled up and gone round the cabin to the back, Bella wondered if there was something she could give him for a present. Christmas was no fun without getting a present and even if she didn't know him, she was sure there was something she could do. He had just fought in the war and instead of going home (probably to a sweetheart, she thought to herself) he was going to visit a grandmother he didn't even know.

When Edward returned from reliving himself, he stood in the doorway and noticed for the first time just how small the cabin was. It was little more than one room, really. The thing that stood out the most was that there was only one bed. A bed with two small children in it where he had been sleeping. Perhaps there was another room in the back; he did notice a door off to the side. That must be where Bella slept.

~TCV~

"You sure you don't mind me sleeping beside your children? You don't even know me." Edward said after Bella had settled him back into bed with her children.

"True true, but you need your rest, and I know your grandmother, so if you aren't a perfect gentleman I will tell her."

Edward's eyes went wide as Bella laughed at him.

"I suspect you are always a perfect gentleman Edward Cullen." But at that moment, Edward's thoughts were anything but gentlemanly, until Bridie rolled over and put her arm across him, snuggling once again into his side. Then he felt like a pervert and quickly pushed his thoughts away.

Bella went back to her rocker for the night. When Edward sneezed in his sleep, she got the idea for his Christmas present. Quickly she picked up some fabric and started stitching. She knew it wouldn't be anything fancy like one he could get at home, but Christmas was Christmas, and he would have a present.

During the night, Edward half woke-up a couple times to see Bella sitting in the rocker beside the fire working on something. She looked like an angel, with the firelight giving a halo to her dark hair. The room was warm and peaceful, and he soon fell back to sleep wondering why she didn't go to bed.

* * *

 **A/N** : My wonderful Beta **SunflowerFran** helps make my sentences prettier and full of commas. My wonderful readers make my day merry and bright. See you tomorrow.


	3. Chapter 3

**The Christmas Visitor ~ Chapter Three**

Glossary:

 _ _Maidin mhaith__ _: Good morning_

 **County Cork, Ireland**

 _ **December 24th, 1918**_

In the morning, Bridie was the first to wake up again. Edward found her staring at him when his eyes opened.

"Shh," She said. "Mam's asleep."

Edward looked over to see Bella still in the rocker, covered with a quilt. She was hunched over to the side in what looked like an uncomfortable position.

"Why didn't she go to bed?" Edward whispered to the little girl beside him.

"There isn't enough room of course." Bridie got out of bed (careful not to disturb Eamon) and went to put another brick of peat on the fire.

 _Of course_ , Edward thought to himself, _this is their only bed, and now I've kicked her out of it for two nights. What a complete shit I am._

He looked up again to see that Bella was up and helping Bridie with something at the fire.

"That's right my girl, just like that." They were stirring something in a pot.

" _Maidin mhaith, Edward," Bella said when she turned to him with something in a bowl. "It isn't much, just a bit of stirabout, but it's time you tried something more than broth."_

 _"Bella, did I kick you out of your bed?" He couldn't help but notice the bags under her eyes, plus she was walking as though sore._

 _"Of course not. I put you there myself. How else are you supposed to get better?"_

 _"What's in that room back there?" He said pointing to a closed door as he sat at the little table._

 _"That was my mother's room, but we use it for cold storage in the winter. If we keep the door closed it is as cold as the outside, and I don't have to use up the peat trying to keep it heated." Bella looked down at her hands, and Edward wondered if she was trying not to cry. "I sold the cot after she died, with just the three of us it seemed the sensible thing to do."_

 _"I'm sorry for taking your bed away from you."_

 _"I put you there!" Bella said fiercely. "And you will stay there until you are better."_

 _Edward felt sufficiently chastised. Obviously Bella was used to doing things her way and didn't want sympathy from anyone._

 _"Yes ma'am." He said with a terrible fake drawl and tipping a pretend cowboy hat._

 _"I knew you were a cowboy!" A voice cried out from the bed._

 _"I'm from Chicago. Not a lot of cowboys there these days."_

 _"Chicago. That's a fancy city isn't it?" Bella knew a bit about Chicago from Lady Cullen._

 _"Yes." Edward said, a little sadly looking around Bella's one room cabin. "A little too fancy for my taste if you ask me."_

 _~TCV~_

 _"So what are we doing?" Edward asked Bridie as he held the candle._

 _"We put it in the window to light the way for Mary and Joseph." The earnestness in her voice touched Edward to no end._

 _"And for Daidí na Nollag." Said Eamon._

 _"You would call him Father Christmas," Bella said._

 _"We usually call him Santa Claus." Both children had all of their attention on Edward. "But I'm sure no matter what we call him he will come if you are good, right?"_

 _"We have been oh-so-good, haven't we Mam?" Bridie said._

 _"Of course, you have. Now let's eat our dinner."_

 _Bella had made a stew of potatoes and turnips with a bit of the dried parsley she had been saving. The weather was still freezing outside so she decided to keep the fish until the next day – she wanted Edward and the children to have a special Nollaig dinner. Traditionally they would have spiced beef that had been prepared for days, but there was just no money for that this year._

 _"This is delicious Bella, thank you." Edward said looking up from his bowl._

 _Bella blushed and then silently cursed herself. She never blushed. After everything she had seen over the years with her Mam as a healer, not much surprised her. But having a man at her table praising her cooking was doing things to her insides._

 _She looked away. "We even have enough for seconds tonight, does anyone want more?"_

 _Bella was terribly pleased when Eamon asked for another serving. He hadn't been eating well since his gran died. The boy didn't like change. He didn't seem too upset by having Edward there though, at least not once he decided he was a cowboy._

 _Once the baby Jesus story was told, Edward recited a poem that his mother read every Christmas; "Twas the night before Christmas." The children sat spellbound and after a debate about whether the great man would be wearing red, like Santa Claus or green, like Daidí na Nollag, they fell asleep._

 _Bella and Edward sat by the fire arguing about who was sleeping where._

 _"I slept most of the day and am feeling much better Bella, thanks to you. But you have slept in that hard rocker for the last two nights. I've slept in much worse situations, trust me. I may have been a war doctor, but I still saw a lot of action."_

 _"All the more reason for you to have a comfortable place to sleep."_

 _"Are you always this stubborn?"_

 _"That's what they tell me."_

 _"Look, we can lay some blankets on the floor, and I will be comfortable. I can truly sleep anywhere, and I will not lay down in that bed again tonight. Please." Edward wasn't above pleading. "I have nothing else to give you for Christmas. At least, let me give you a good nights sleep."_

 _In the end, Bella relented. She was getting to the point where she was too tired to argue. Bringing the sled in from its hiding place behind the privy, and placing Bridie's doll where she would be sure to see her first thing when she woke, Bella crawled into bed. Edward was laying on the floor by the fire in a nest of blankets. The two lay there staring at each other. Bella stared at his lips and thought about the last time she kissed a man, which was much different than the last time she actually_ _ _wanted__ _to kiss a man. His lips were far too pretty and she was an Irish peasant who worked for his grandmother. She sighed and rolled over. Her job was to look after her children and keep them safe and fed. She wasn't allowed to want more from her life._

 _Edward lay there staring at Bella for a long time. He tried to remember the last time he had kissed a woman. He didn't have a sweetheart back home. No one but his mother and father had written to him during the war. He wasn't really in any rush to go back to Chicago. Life there had been boring and lonely before he was shipped overseas. The change, while terrifying, had been good for him. His life was always so placid before, most of the decisions had been made for him: what school to go to, who to date, what career to have. Until he went to war, he felt like he was sleepwalking through life. Even the girls he dated had been picked out for him. However, none of them were like this woman._

 _Edward wasn't sleepwalking through life anymore. Maybe this Christmas would be the start of everything he now wanted._

 _With that thought, he rolled over and fell asleep on the hard floor, more comfortable in his heart than he had been in years._

* * *

 **A/N** _:_ A Shorter chapter today. Edward slept the day away and the children drove Bella crazy because it is the day before Christmas. This is pretty much my life right now. I have been reminded that there are only three more sleeps about 50 times this morning.

Thanks to **SunflowerFran** for her work and to all of you for reading and commenting. You are making my heart grow two sizes bigger every day.


	4. Chapter 4

**The Christmas Visitor ~ Chapter Four**

 _Glossary_

 _ _Daidí na Nollag__ _: Father Christmas/Santa Claus_

 _ _Nollaig Shona Dhuit__ _: Happy Christmas_

 **County Cork, Ireland**

 _ **December 25** **th** **, 1918**_

"Mammy! Mammy! Look at the doll _Daidí na Nollag brought me!" Edward woke up to the excited sounds of Bridie finding her Christmas present._

 _"_ _Oh, she is so beautiful. She looks just like me! Do you think he knows what I look like?" Bridie's wide eyes sparkled in her face as she thought about the possibilities._

 _Edward couldn't hear Bella's answer because she was still buried underneath the blankets._

 _Edward sat up and realized the fire was blazing hot. Bella must have gotten up in the night. Peat fires were something Edward had never understood until now, but the warmth coming off it was delicious. He stood and stretched, and after folding up the blankets, sat at the table. In front of him was a square of cloth with stitching on it. When he looked carefully, he saw that the stitching said: Dr. E. Cullen. Above his name was a delicately stitched shamrock. The edge of the cloth had all been rolled and stitched in green as well. Edward looked up at the bed to find Bella staring at him._

 _"_ _Nollaig Shona Dhuit, Edward."_

 _Edward didn't know what to say. He felt as though he might cry, but thankfully, Eamon chose that moment to awake._

 _"_ _A sled! A sled! Oh Mam, can we try it out right now?" That was the loudest the boy had been since Edward's arrival._

 _"_ _Not yet, dear one. The sun is barely up, and we haven't had breakfast. I would like to try and make it to church this morning too if the way isn't too bad."_

 _Eamon's face fell. "Aw, Mam."_

 _"_ _Did you get a present from Daidí na Nollag too fairy man?" Bridie was standing beside him looking at the handkerchief in his hands. Instead of answering, he handed it over to her._

 _"_ _Oh, that's just from Mammy. I recognize her stitches." Bridie dismissed and diminished the present the way only an innocent child can do when something isn't exciting for them._

 _"_ _I know it isn't much. You probably have much fancier at home, but at least you will have a piece of Ireland to take back with you when you leave, to remember your adventure." Bella said this while not quite looking at Edward. She was in front of what he guessed was the stove, but was more like metal planks set into the fireplace above the fire. He noticed how her hips moved gently as she got things ready to make breakfast. He also noticed the side swell of her breast as she reached above to grab a pot hanging from the low ceiling._

 _He quickly moved beside her and grabbed the pot from the hook. Leaning in he said, "this is the finest Christmas gift I've had in many a year. You amaze me, Bella. But who brings you gifts?"_

 _Bella stiffened with his proximity. His warm breath washed over her cheek, and it was all she could do to not turn and nestle herself into his arms. She had no intention of answering his question, she couldn't remember the last time she'd received a Christmas gift. Last year at this time her own Mam had been dying, although she held on until the spring. They always saved their money for the children anyway._

 _~TCV~_

 _After_ _breakfast,_ _Bella got the children dressed for the trek to church. Edward had entertained them through the meal telling them stories of his friend Jasper who he served with in the war. Jasper, according to Edward, was a real cowboy. He lived in Texas and had a ranch, horses, and everything. Edward even tried to recreate Jasper's southern twang when he told his stories. Eamon hung on his every word._

 _In the small_ _house,_ _Edward hadn't really paid attention to how little Bella and her children had. However, seeing her put on a_ _very thin_ _, much mended, coat and then wrapping herself in a blanket he became worried. It was freezing cold outside, and_ _he_ _didn't know how long the walk would be. He thought of his mother's wardrobe back in Chicago and how decadent it all seemed to him now. On a cold day like today his mother would be wearing fur – and would never walk anywhere. Bella assured Edward he didn't have to come to church with_ _them,_ _but he didn't mind. It was Christmas after all, and he would have been going to mass with his parents had he been home._

 _By the time they reached the_ _churchyard,_ _Edward was well aware that he wasn't one hundred percent better. They must have walked over a mile in the snow and Bella's boots did not look warm enough. She kept a close eye on Edward who decided he should pull the children on Eamon's new sled – much to Eamon's delight – and so the children stayed warm wrapped up together in a blanket. Edward was exhausted, and nervous. Here was a whole town of people who didn't know him, and who, according to the stories Bella was telling him, had a fear of outsiders._

 _However, many people came up to wish Bella and the children_ _Nollaig Shona Dhuit_ _and stare at Edward. A large man named Emmett grabbed Bella and swung her around. They_ _obviously_ _knew each other well and Edward couldn't help feel jealous until a herd of children, followed by a blonde woman carrying a baby, came up and yelled at the man to put Bella down._

 _"_ _So, you're the American are ye?" The woman named Rosie said to Edward._

 _"_ _Rose, I would like you to meet Dr. Edward Cullen." Bella introduced._

 _"_ _Cullen? Are you related to Lady Cullen?"_

 _"_ _She's my_ _grandmother,_ _" Edward said. "Although, I've never met her and she didn't know I was coming."_

 _"_ _How lovely." Rosie smiled at him. "She will be so pleased you're here."_

 _"_ _Well, that explains why there was an American passed out in the snow in the far reaches of Ireland days before_ _Nollaig,_ _" Emmett said with a laugh._

 _"_ _Yes._ _Unfortunately._ _I was ill and was not thinking straight or I wouldn't have rented the horse." Edward looked worried. "I don't even know what happened to the horse. I hope it's okay."_

 _"_ _If you rented it from John down at the Inn the horse will have returned home. They are known for offing their riders when they are done with their journey, whether the rider is done or not."_

The bells began to ring again so they all entered the church. Bella and her children shared a pew with Emmett and his family. Edward laughed to see so many little heads shoved together on the bench, but they all sat and solemnly stared ahead. People kept craning their heads to get a look at the newcomer, so Edward asked Emmett if he could sit at his end so as not to cause any rumours about Bella.

Emmett's returning grin was wide. "A gentleman!" He said as he clapped Edward on the shoulder. "I like you."

Emmett squeezed Edward between himself and a small boy around Eamon's age who had blonde hair and blue eyes like his mother. "This is Patrick. I need to sit on the end so I can hear the children and not the priest as I'm deaf in this ear." Emmett said with a wink.

While Edward was in France, he didn't bother with going to church. Not even when he was on leave. So it had been a while since he had to get his brain around the Latin sermon. After a while, it all started coming back to him but the sermon was also interspersed with words in Irish which Edward really didn't understand. He let his mind wander. He looked over at Bella, who had a glassy look in her eyes as though she wasn't quite there and he wondered where her mind was. As he stared, she turned and caught him looking at her. He quickly turned away when he heard Emmett chuckle. Emmett was grinning at him widely and he groaned internally when he felt himself blushing. He was a doctor, a decorated soldier, and a grown man and he blushed from getting caught looking at a pretty girl.

Ireland was doing in his head.

After the services, Rose and Emmett insisted that Bella and the children come to their home for the Nollaig feast. Of course, Edward was invited too. Bella tried to protest, but Rose wouldn't take no for an answer.

"I can always find ways to feed more mouths, Bella, so don't you fret," She said as they walked. "There is a good chance this one is the last babe we will have. Emmett has been afraid to touch me since he's been born for fear of losing me for good next time."

"Well, a prolonged break can't hurt none. Give your body a chance to heal." Bella looked over at her friend slyly. "Besides, there are other things you can do that won't produce babies."

Rose laughed. "Oh, I'm well aware of those other things, trust me. I just need Emmett to relax a bit first. Is that how you and Jamie prevented more babies after Eamon?"

"Ha! No." Bella looked around to make sure little or big ears weren't listening, but the men and children were far enough ahead. Emmett was giving the children turns running with the sled. Edward turned around, caught Bella's eye, and smiled. She couldn't help but smile back. "Jamie was too busy making love to his gun to be bothered with us. Once Eamon was born, he was hardly there and when he was, he was angry all the time."

"Do you miss him at all?" Rose couldn't help but ask. Bella had been alone for a long time now.

"I miss the boy he was when we were growing up. I miss the friend I had once, but I don't miss the angry man he became. It was the anger that got him killed. It was that anger that killed that young innocent English boy who wasn't doing anything except walking down the street. His prejudices killed the boy I grew up with and we are better off without him. That's not the kind of life I would want for my children."

This wasn't a new conversation for Bella and Rose, but she still liked to check in on her friend now and then. With a house full of children, it was often hard to get together – especially in the winter.

"Dr. Cullen is quite handsome," Rose said, grinning at her friend.

"Aye, he's grand. He is also quite educated, well-to-do, and much too good for this peasant."

"That's not what his eyes say when he looks at you."

"Well, he was just in a war filled with men. He would probably make eyes at old Mrs. O'Malley if she gave him the time of day."

Rose burst into laughter and all the children, and men stopped to look at her. She waved them off.

"Bella! That's awful and not true and you know it."

"True or not, in two days I deliver him to his grandmother and will probably never see him again. That is the kind of truth I need to live with."

~TCV~

After Christmas dinner with the neighbours (Emmet had run back to Bella's cabin and grabbed the frozen fish outside the door) the exhausted group walked back to the cabin where the children were tucked into the cot.

Bella and Edward then sat around the fire talking.

"What was that song Bridie asked for while they were falling asleep?"

" _Don Oíche Úd I Mbeithil_. My Mam used to sing it to me; it's an old Christmas carol. It roughly translates to _That Night In Bethlehem_."

"It's beautiful. Could you sing it again?" Edward felt a little shy asking, but he truly did want to hear Bella sing again.

"Really?"

"Really."

"On one condition," Bella looked up at Edward with twinkling eyes. "You tell me about life in Chicago afterwards."

"All right, but there isn't much to tell."

So Bella sang the carol again and Edward leaned back in the wooden chair and closed his eyes. He had never known such a sense of peace as he did right then sitting in that tiny cabin.

When Bella finished, he sighed and looked at her. Her eyes were expectant, but he didn't have a happy story to tell her.

"I've seen too much war, hunger, and destruction not to be grateful for my upbringing." He ran his hands through his hair and sat forward, forearms resting on his knees. "However, up until I left for war, I never really felt like I was living."

"How so?"

"My parents hold a very upper-level place in Chicago society. My Dad, while considered an Irish immigrant by society standards, was also an immigrant with a medical degree. He married my mother, Esme, who could be considered Chicago royalty. Don't get me wrong, my mother is a lovely and caring person, but the one big stand she took in life was to marry my father for love. Everything else has been prescribed for her, and the result is that she has done the same for me. They decided what sports I should take, what degree I should get." Edward shook his head and looked up at Bella. "Even who I should date. Always hoping I would settle down with some nice society girl."

"But you didn't?" Bella couldn't help but ask.

"No. When talk of the war started, I wanted to leave right away, but America wasn't in the war yet. However, when I finally had the opportunity, I took it. It was the first time I felt like I was able to do something for myself and use my skills to really help people. I no longer felt as though I was sleepwalking through life. And, to tell you the truth, when I signed up I honestly didn't care if I lived or died."

Bella gasped.

"I know it's a terrible thing for a spoiled rich boy to say."

"No," Bella was shaking her head and couldn't help but reach out and take Edward's hands. "I... I feel sorry for you. To have been so lost that something as awful as war seemed like an escape."

"This coming from the widow in the one room cabin that is half the size of my mother's day parlour. You took in a total stranger in the middle of the night and nursed him back to health. You amaze me and are worth twenty of the society girls my mother has been introducing me to over the years."

"Ach, 'tis nothing," Bella waved away his praise and turned away so he wouldn't see her cheeks burn. "What'll you do when you return to Chicago?" She asked while tending to the kettle on the fire. Returning to the table, she poured them each a new cup of tea, this time topping it off with a bit of the whiskey Emmett provided.

"I'm not going back to Chicago."

"No? Won't your mother be upset?"

"Oh, she will be devastated at first. But eventually, I think she will understand."

"So where are you off to then?"

"I'm not entirely sure. You see, when the armistice was announced and everyone was cheering, I was happy, of course, for the war to have ended, but a feeling of dread came over me. When I should have been celebrating the fact that I wouldn't have to patch up anymore broken or dying men, young men who had so much life to live, I couldn't help but think that the last thing I wanted to do was go home. I was actually surprised I had lived through the war; I never expected that to happen. Jasper, my cowboy friend I told you about, noticed how I was feeling and gave me some good advice."

"What did he say?"

"He said, _'so find a new home.'_ Just like that, as though it were the easiest thing in the world to do. And then I laughed because if I want that to happen, it could be the easiest thing in the world."

"Edward Cullen, are you a bit t'ick sometimes?"

Edward tried to muffle his laugh so as not wake the children. "Yes, Bella, sometimes I am exceedingly thick."

* * *

 **A/N** : It's Christmas Day for our couple. I think it was a good one, don't you?

Thanks to **SunflowerFran** for her hard work editing, I keep writing and rewriting up until I hit publish so all mistakes are mine. Thanks to you for reading and to all who have been commenting. It means the world to me.

Only two more sleeps! I hope I don't lose my mind before then.


	5. Chapter 5

**The Christmas Visitor ~ Chapter Five  
**

Glossary

 _Lá an Dreoilín_ : The Day of the Wren

 _Lá Fhéile Stiofáin:_ The Feast of St. Stephen

 _púicing_ : a child being cross or moody

 **County Cork, Ireland**

 _ **December 26th, 1918**_

Nestled in a pile of blankets on the floor, Edward awoke to the sound of Bridie and Eamon giggling as they looked out the window.

"Can we light the candle, Mam?" Bridie asked.

"No, not during the day. I'm sure the singers won't be here for hours." Bella said from under a pile of blankets.

"Singers?" Edward asked as he sat up in front of the fire.

"It's Lá an Dreoilín," said Bridie from beside the window.

Bella muffled something from the bed.

"I'm sorry," Edward said. "I don't know what that is."

"Lá Fhéile Stiofáin:theFeast of St. Stephen, also known as The Day of the Wren," Bella said as she sat up and stretched her arms above her head. Edward could not take his eyes off her. She was rumpled, and her hair was a mess, yet she looked stunning.

Bella glanced over and caught him looking. Her cheeks turned red, and she pulled the covers back over herself.

Bella took a couple deep breaths to clear the look of Edward in the morning out of her mind. Instead of dreaming she delved into a lengthy explanation of the holiday.

" _Lá Fhéile Stiofáin_ means _The Feast of St. Stephen_ and _Lá an Dreoilín_ means _The Day of the Wren._ A group of village boys and men, called wrenboys, go door to door with a dead wren tied up in a ribboned holly bush. They sing the wren song and ask for a penny to bury the bird."

"Why on earth do they do that?" Edward asked.

"There are many stories behind it, each as unlikely as the next. One story is that St. Stephen was betrayed by a wren when he was hiding in a bush from his enemies. Therefore, the wren, like St. Stephen, should be hunted down and stoned to death. An eye-for-an-eye sórt of thing. Another story says that a group of Irish soldiers were betrayed by a wren as they were sneaking into a Viking camp in the dead of night. The wren, so the story goes, started eating bread crumbs off a drum which created a rat-a-tat sound and awoke the drummer who sounded the alarm. The Irish soldiers were defeated, and the poor wren has been persecuted ever since. Sometimes it's isn't a Viking camp but Cromwell's camp. Either way, we lose."

"That is all rather gruesome."

Bridie broke into song and started dancing around the room.

"Oh the wren, oh the wren is the king of all birds.

Ón St. Stephen's Day he got caught in the furze.

So it's up with the kettle and down with the pan.

Won't you give us a penny for to bury the wren."

Eamon joined in the singing:

"Hup-bup-biddley-dah, diddle-daddle diddle-dah,  
Doo-dah diddley-dah di-diddley diddle-um!"

The two children joined hands and swung each other around in a circle, eventually falling down in a fit of giggles.

By this time, Bella was up and out of bed, hair tied up, apron on, and standing by the fire making breakfast.

"Well, yes, I guess it is. That's Ireland for you." She shrugged her shoulders. "But all the wrenboys want are some treats and money. Neither of which I have for them this year so I hope they pass us by."

Bridie and Eamon groaned when they heard their mam say that. They loved hearing the wrenboys sing.

Edward finished folding up his makeshift bed and came to stand beside Bella near the fire.

"Is my being here going to cause you trouble?" He said in a low voice so the children wouldn't hear. "I can't imagine people would think it proper for you to have an unmarried man in your home."

"No, they wouldn't," Bella said firmly. "But I stopped worrying about what the villagers thought long ago. No one would do any less than I have done for a stranger who was sick and lost."

"I don't know about that, Bella."

Bella could feel Edward's breath on her head as he leaned close to talk to her. She looked up at him, and he stood there, studying her face. She thought he might say something but then Bridie and Eamon started bickering, and he pulled away.

"Let go of my hair!" Bridie screamed as Eamon had a fist full of her dark curls firmly gripped in his right hand.

"Eamon!" Bella called out. "What has gotten into you! You are doing the devil red!"

When Bella turned back to the stove Eamon kicked his sister who screamed out in pain.

"Let you stop your oul' púicing or l'll give you who began it!" Bella said as she turned back to her son and waggled her finger at him.

Eamon looked down at his feet but didn't say anything. Bella could see the anger in his face, and it was at times like this that he looked most like his father.

"I will not have fighting like that under my roof do you understand? There is enough of that going on around us, all the time. Can we not have one place where we are free from fighting?"

Edward watched as Bella threw herself into a chair at the table. He could tell she was trying not to cry. Having just come from one war he was more than happy to not be fighting anymore. He knew that back in America he wouldn't have to worry about such things.

But after talking to Emmett yesterday, he was aware that the unrest in Ireland was getting worse. Emmett was frank and open with Edward about how bad things were, even in their own village. He didn't tell Bella's story, but from what was implied, Bella's husband had been a staunch defender of Irish freedom and cared more about the 'cause' than his own family when he met his end.

"It would be wise for Bella and her littles to go to America. She isn't as tough as she looks and has no close family here anymore."

Emmett looked at Edward as he spoke.

"I would go too if I thought I could get this giant brood of mine over there in one piece. I don't like fighting, but eventually, you are forced to pick a side."

"Have you not picked a side?" Edward asked.

"Of course I have. But I'll not risk leaving my Rosie a widow like Bella." Emmett looked back at his wife as she walked beside Bella, laughing. "Besides, she would probably dig me up and kill me all over again herself."

As Edward stood in the warm cabin that morning, he wondered if Bella would like to go to America with him. Was this a crazy thought? He wasn't sure he cared if it was.

The day passed peacefully enough. Bella's little cabin was on the outskirts of town, and none of the wrenboys showed up to sing. Bridie and Eamon were disappointed, but Edward could tell Bella was relieved.

It was still bitterly cold, and they went through quite a bit of peat on the fire. Edward had taken Eamon outside to pull his new sled around in what was now icy slush. The two came back in with red cheeks, Eamon on Edward's back shouting "giddyup cowboy" at the top of his lungs. Bella and Bridie stared at them, shocked to see Eamon being so loud and happy.

That night, while the children were in bed, Edward and Bella sat by the fire.

"Your grandmother will be back tomorrow. You can come with us when I go to work and wait for her."

"Oh." Was all Edward felt like saying. The thought of it being his last night in this small place made him feel terribly sad.

"I know she will be so happy to meet you. There is a painting of your grandfather in her sitting room, and you look so much like him. I don't know why I didn't see it at first."

"Probably because I was unconscious and you thought I was a fairy," Edward said with a sad smile.

Bella studied Edward's face for a moment while the fire crackled behind them.

"What's wrong, Edward, aren't you looking forward to meeting your grandmother? She really is a lovely lady."

"I am. Of course, I am." Edward looked up into Bella's big brown eyes that gazed black in the firelight. "It's just ... I can honestly say that this has been the best Christmas I have ever had."

"Oh come now, you can't mean that."

"But I do, Bella." Edward reached over and took Bella's hand. "I know you will think I am acting forward, but I need to tell you that you are the most beautiful and amazing woman I have ever met."

Bella stared at Edward, speechless. Much to Edward's delight, however, she didn't pull away from him.

"I don't know what to say to that." She finally said, standing to move around the room for a moment before settling on fiddling with the kettle.

"Bella," Edward started to talk, but she came back to the table and helds her fingers over his lips.

"Please Edward, don't say any more. You are a handsome visitor who belongs to a world I can never be part of. You may as well be a fairy for all the good it will do." Bella says softly with a sad little laugh. "It's been wonderful having you here, but tomorrow you'll go back to your reality, and I go back to mine."

Fingers still on his lips Edward gently holds Bella's wrist in place. Slowly he pulls back her hand and gently kisses each finger, starting with the thumb and moving slowly towards her little pinky, all the while looking deeply into her eyes.

"Bella," Edward says softly moving back to her thumb and kissing it. "If there is one thing I have learned from this war," he places a kiss on her forefinger, "is that there are many different realities in this world."

Kiss.

His lips graze her middle finger. "My reality is that I've never felt more alive."

Kiss.

His lips brush her ring finger. "Than I have these last few days staying in this tiny home with you and your children."

Kiss.

His lips close around her pinky finger, and she can feel the soft brush of his tongue against the tip.

Feeling as though she is on fire, Bella gasps and pulls her hand away.

"Forgive me for my forwardness Bella, but I could not leave here without letting you know how I feel. If you will excuse me, I will be right back."

Edward leaves the cabin, and Bella can hear him moving around back to the privy. Not knowing what to do, she quickly crawls into bed beside her sleeping children.

Sleep doesn't come easily to Bella that night, and for a long time, she lies there holding her hand, marveling at the fact that she can still feel Edwards lips against her fingers.

Edward, for his part, stands outside staring at the sky. The night is cold and clear and even though he is freezing he isn't ready to go back inside.

In the sky he imagines he can see the Christmas star shining brightly upon him. At that moment, he sends up a silent prayer to a God he isn't sure he believes in. Christmas is, after all, a time for miracles – and Edward is pretty certain he has found his.

* * *

A/N: One more sleep! You will have to wait a couple days for the next installment but you will all be so busy celebrating the holidays (in whatever form that may take) I'm sure you won't mind. Extra special thanks go to **SunflowerFran** for her red pen (all mistakes are mine, I fiddle right up to the end).

And an extra big, extra special thanks to all who are reading. I hope _Daidí na Nollag_ is good to all of you this year. ;)


	6. Chapter 6

**The Christmas Visitor ~ Chapter Six**

Glossary

 _Nollaig na mBan_ : Little Christmas/Women's Christmas/Feast of the Epiphany

 _B_ _uíochas le Dia_ _:_ Thank God

 **County Cork, Ireland**

 _ **January 5**_ _ **th**_ _ **, 1919**_

"She isn't coming."

Edward looked away from the window to where his grandmother was sitting, wool rug on her lap, close by the fire. Her ever-present cane was by her side, and although she did need it, Edward still felt as if she could wield it as a weapon if need be.

It had been a revealing ten days.

Ten days since Bella had brought him to the _fancy house on the hill_ (as the locals called it).

Ten days of getting to know his grandmother, Elizabeth Cullen.

Ten days of stories about his family, especially her Irish side, some of whom disowned her when she married an English man fifty years ago, many of whom didn't and with whom she was still close.

Ten days since he last slept near Bella and her children.

Of course, he saw her almost every day. She worked for his grandmother, and the children had to come with her unless they were with Rose and Emmett. Usually, they were in the kitchen. Bridie would help her mother any way she could. Eamon would sit in the corner near the fire and play with some old toys that were kept for just that purpose.

Edward found himself in the kitchen a lot.

"Why isn't she coming?"

"Bridie ran up this morning with the message that Eamon took ill in the night."

Edward walked away from the window and sat down in the chair opposite his grandmother.

"Ill? Ill with what? Does he have a fever? Vomiting? He was rather listless and sullen yesterday when he was following me around."

Elizabeth gave Edward a look that quieted him.

"The only message I got was that he was ill, Edward. Bridie is just five years old after all; she can't be expected to go into details."

Elizabeth watched as her grandson, the spitting image of her late husband, ran his fingers through his hair and pulled harshly on the strands.

"Your grandfather's doctor bag is in my bedroom on the top shelf of our closet."

Edward looked up at his grandmother smiling at him.

"Right," Edward said standing. "First I'll make us some breakfast, and then I will go and visit them."

"Edward, I may be slowing down, but I am more than capable of making myself tea and toast."

"Are you sure," Edward said, but Elizabeth could see that his mind was already out the door and back in Bella's wee cabin.

"But first I need to talk to you about something, so could you sit again for a moment and listen please."

Edward sat back down, but his mind was still worrying over Eamon.

"Edward!" Elizabeth snapped her fingers at him. He looked at her with surprise, and she laughed.

"Dear boy, you'll be with them soon, just give me a moment."

"Sorry Gran," he shook his head in an attempt to shake away his worries for a moment.

"Tomorrow is Nollaig na mBan, or as you would call it Epiphany. Another name for it is Little Christmas or Women's Christmas."

"That's a lot of names for one day."

"Indeed. Traditionally, Women's Christmas was a day when the men would take over all the work, and the women would go out and visit their friends and celebrate. Children would give their mothers and grandmothers presents."

Elizabeth paused, trying to collect her thoughts.

"What I would like is for you to invite Bella and the children to come tomorrow for dinner. Of course, Bella will be preparing the dinner but we can have something simple, and you can help. Goodness knows you must be learning a thing or two from spending all that time in the kitchen these days." Elizabeth winked at her grandson causing Edward to laugh.

"Guilty.

"Grandmother, if Eamon is seriously ill I would like permission to bring him here. Their cabin is so cold and drafty, and I think it would be best to have him close by. We both know Bella will be fretting if she has to take too many days off work."

"That would be fine Edward, but you do realize that it will send a message to the villagers."

"I know."

~TCV~

Edward all but ran to Bella's cabin once he finished talking with his grandmother. The air was bitterly cold in the early morning fog.

When he got there he had to collect himself and not barge right in without knocking.

"Edward!" Bella was surprised to see him. Her cheeks pinked as she tried to fix her hair. She looked like she hadn't slept all night and it was obvious she had been crying. The cabin smelled strongly of vomit.

"Grandmother said Eamon was ill, I've come to see if I can be of some help."

"Of course, come in."

Edward found Eamon burning up, a bucket of sick on the floor beside him.

"I'm sorry; I haven't had a chance to clean yet. I'm afraid to take it away in case he needs it again."

"Have you given him anything?"

"I've tried to give him a small spoon of watery broth, but even that won't stay down."

Edward sat on the bed and pulled a thermometer out of the bag.

"Luckily my grandfather had one of these."

"Oh," Bella said looking shocked. "You don't need to put that in his..." She broke off not wanting to finish the sentence. Eamon was not going to like it if they were shoving things inside him.

"No, I think we will be fine with the armpit."

"Buíochas le Dia," Bella said quietly.

They worked together to take Eamon's damp shirt off. Edward gently placed the thermometer under the boy's armpit, and they waited, Edward looking at his watch while stealing glances at Bella.

After five minutes, he took out the thermometer. "103 degrees. I don't like that at all."

"Do you think it's an infection?" Bella asked.

"I can't really tell."

Edward did a cursory examination of Eamon and was pleased that none of his touches made the boy cry out in pain.

"Let's try and get his fever down first and hope the vomiting stops. I have some paracetamol from my grandfather's bag that we can crush up and give to him later."

~TCV~

The two of them worked tirelessly during the day. Eamon continued to be sick, but Emmett had come around and brought a second bucket, so they were able to change it out right away. Even though it was freezing out and quite cold in the cabin, Eamon vacillated between sweating profusely and crying out that he was cold. Bella and Edward only left his side to clean things or get more cool water to try and bring down his fever.

Eventually, by early evening, he fell into a more peaceful sleep. The vomiting had stopped a couple hours ago, and he was able to hold down the paracetamol that Edward had added to a bit of broth.

Bella sat down at the table, put her head on her arms and wept.

"Come here," Edward said and pulled her into his arms as he sat beside her. He knew she was exhausted.

"This is so hard on my own," she said quietly. "I don't know what I would have done if you weren't here."

"You would have done what you always do Bella, you would have worked hard, brought down his fever and made him well again."

"The only thing I have to offer for dinner is a bit of bread and scrape."

"I'm fine Bella. I'll make us a cup of tea, you sit."

When Bridie came back from Rose and Emmett's house, she knew enough to be quiet. Bella was so grateful that Bridie was kept busy and fed all day; she didn't have the energy to do much of anything right now.

"Now, I need you to do something for me," Edward said when they finished their tea and Bella looked a bit better. "Grandmother has invited you all for dinner tomorrow for the _null-ig na man_ feast."

Listening to Edward butcher her language always got a smile out of Bella.

"However, I would like you all to come with me now. I will sit up with Eamon tonight, and he will be warmer, and you and Bridie can share a room."

Bella started to shake her head.

"Please, Bella. I won't leave if you don't agree but I've already asked Emmett to go to Gran's and open up the spare rooms and light the fires. Gran is expecting us. Let me take care of you."

"Is it safe to move him?"

Edward sighed with relief. "We won't be out for long, and we can wrap him up in blankets. He'll be warm and safe in my arms."

~TCV~

On the road to Lady Cullen's house, they were stopped by a group of armed men. After convincing them that Edward was not English, and after Bella gave them a stern talking to, they were left to go on their way.

"But stay off the roads tonight Bella." Edward heard one of them whisper to her. "We've had word that a British troop is coming through and we are laying mines."

"Jay-sus," Bella said, crossing herself as they walked away. "I fear things are going to get much worse before they get better."

* * *

 **A/N** : Happy New Year's Eve every one! The best present I got this Christmas was all of your kind reviews and to have you all read my story. (Although to be honest, I only got one other present - but that doesn't change the fact that I appreciate every comment and reader!) Big thanks to **SunflowerFran** for her hard work and amazing turn-around time when I send her a chapter. All mistakes are mine.

A bit of a time jump in this chapter. Tomorrow is my birthday and I have a friend in town so it will be a couple days before the next chapter is ready to post.

Have a wonderful and safe New Year.


	7. Chapter 7

**The Christmas Visitor ~ Chapter Seven**

Glossary:

cad tá á dhéanamh agat: What are you doing?

 _Nollaig na mBan_ : Little Christmas/Women's Christmas/Feast of the Epiphany

 **County Cork, Ireland**

 _ **January 6**_ _ **th**_ _ **, 1919**_

Edward spent the night with Eamon. There was no more vomiting, but the little boy's fever did come back for a few hours. Edward was glad Bella had agreed to move into his grandmother's house.

Bella couldn't believe when she woke up and the sun was shining in her window. She hadn't expected to sleep at all, as worried as she was about Eamon, but she did sleep, and she slept hard. Looking to her left, she saw that someone had come in and stoked the fire, but the bed beside her was empty. Bridie must have woken early and left quietly.

Quickly dressing, Bella went to the room next door to check on Eamon. What she saw when she opened the door made her heart ache. Edward was asleep on the covers, cloth still in hand, Eamon curled into his side. Quietly she walked into the room and placed her hand on Eamon's forehead. He was still warm but much cooler than he had been. Downstairs, she could hear Bridie's voice as it carried through the marble entryway and up the stairs. The old house was rather echoey. Bella slipped out of the room, and Edward and Eamon slept on.

Bella found Bridie on Lady Cullen's lap.

"Bridie! Cad tá á dhéanamh agat?"

Startled, Bridie jumped off. "Sorry mam."

"It's no trouble Bella, you know that," Lady Cullen said. "Bridie and I were just having a little chat. She was kind enough to keep me company."

"Thank you so much for your kindness in letting us stay here. I'm so sorry I overslept this morning, Lady Cullen. I'll get started on your breakfast right away."

"I already made myself a cup of tea and a bite of toast, so there is no rush. You might want to cook a bigger breakfast for yourself and Edward though. I believe he was up most of the night with your boy, and will most likely be famished. Use the fresh eggs."

Bella's eyes lit up at the mention of eggs.

"Bridie can stay and keep me company. This old house gets lonely."

"If you're sure ma'am."

"You know I am." And it was true. Bella found that Bridie had been spending more and more time with Lady Cullen over the last two weeks and less time helping in the kitchen. Still, having her out from underfoot was a help in itself.

Bella turned to leave and could hear Bridie asking Lady Cullen to keep telling her the fairy story. She laughed at the two of them.

In the kitchen, Bella quickly put together the ingredients for a broth for Eamon. She wondered if she should go to him again, but she knew Edward could handle everything and she had much work to do. Today was _Nollaig na mBan,_ and if Lady Cullen wanted a special meal for dinner tonight, she had to get started.

Upstairs, Edward awoke with a start. He looked down at the dark head next to him and was happy to see that no sweat was on the little brow, nor was the skin flushed. The sun was shining through the window so Edward got up and pulled the curtains, something he should have done last night. After such an ordeal, there was a good chance Eamon would sleep the day away.

After saying good morning to his gran and Bridie, he found Bella in the kitchen kneading bread with flour up to her elbows and some on her right cheek.

He watched her for a moment.

"This is how I want to start every morning."

Bella almost screamed with surprise, so focused on her work she hadn't heard him come into the kitchen.

"What," she said as she composed herself. "Waking up on top of the bedclothes next to a sick little boy?

She couldn't look him in the eye as she spoke, so Edward moved closer. Gently rubbing the flour off her cheek with his thumb he said, "No. Waking up with you in my home."

"Planning on hiring me, are ye?" Bella said.

"Bella," Edward started, but Bella shushed him.

"Please don't, Edward. I'm not Bridie, I don't want fairy stories."

~TCV~

"Bella, you have outdone yourself with this feast," Lady Cullen said laying down her napkin.

"Thank you, ma'am. I will admit it feels weird to be sitting at this table with you."

"This isn't the first time Bella."

"I know. But it is the first time since my mother died and I started working for you. Before that, I was always here as a daughter and not an employee."

"Oh, my dear," Lady Cullen reached out and took Bella's hand. "I think of you as much more than an employee."

Edward watched the exchange between his grandmother and Bella. He agreed with his gran about how delicious the feast was. He had done little to help even though traditionally, Epiphany was supposed to be the women's Christmas. Bella had kicked him out of her kitchen shortly after his declaration that morning and told him the best way he could help was keeping an eye on Eamon.

Edward stayed at the house while Bella took his grandmother to the Epiphany service. It turns out the priest was a cousin of hers. When Edward expressed his surprise at this Bella and Elizabeth laughed.

"I was one of ten children Edward; at least, ten that lived. My brothers and sisters went on to have many children of their own. Father Michael is my grandnephew once removed. You are probably related to half of Cork."

Edward, an only child of two only children, was fascinated by this.

"Oh!" Bella clapped with excitement. "Then you'll be related to Emmett somehow because Father Michael is also a cousin of his," Bella said.

For a moment, Edward felt a little panicky. "I'm not related to you am I?"

"No," Bella shook her head. "My mam and I moved here when I was little after my da died. She wanted to start somewhere with no sad memories."

"What was her name?"

"Renée. Her mother was from Brittany." Bella felt the tears welling up as she talked of her mam, even though she enjoyed talking about her.

"She was an exceptional woman," Elizabeth said, reaching out for Bella's hand again. "And my very dear friend."

In spite of Eamon's sickness, it was a very pleasant day.

Edward felt a little guilty that Eamon had slept the day away and would not be able to return home – but not that guilty. He enjoyed knowing Bella and her children were safe and warm for another night. The incident on the road had spooked him the night before, but Bella said it was quite common.

~TCV~

"I'm closing up the house and moving to Cobh to be with my sister," Elizabeth said looking at Edward. The two of them were sharing a nightcap in the parlour. Bella had taken Bridie up to bed and wanted to sit with Eamon for a while and see if he would take more broth. "We are both getting on and are going to be in need of more assistance."

"She doesn't want to move here?" Edward asked. "This house is beautiful."

"No. She feels nervous in this part of the county – I am considered English after all, since I married an Englishman, and she has a full staff that works for her."

"What about Bella?"

"Well, I have been putting it off because of that dear girl. I would take her with me if I could, but a city house full of old ladies is no place to raise children. Besides, they need a father." Elizabeth eyed Edward as she spoke.

"Yes, I can see that," Edward said.

"And Bella needs someone too." Elizabeth smiled at him. "You could have this house if you wanted. Would you be interested in living here and being a country doctor?"

It wasn't as though Edward hadn't thought about staying but that wasn't his dream either, and he didn't feel safe here.

"I have thought about being a country doctor. I don't plan on staying in Chicago when I go back to America. I'm moving south to live near my friend Jasper who owns a ranch in Texas."

"If I know my son, although maybe I don't anymore, he won't be too pleased about that."

"No, you are right Gran, he won't be pleased. He wanted me to specialize before I left for the war. He doesn't think general practice is good enough for me."

"What about your mother? I've never met her, but she has written me some lovely letters over the years."

"She'll be heartbroken that I am leaving, but I just can't go back there. It isn't the life I want."

"What do you want Edward?"

Edward paused. The idea that had been floating around in his mind since that fateful night when Bella found him in the snow finally took solid form. "I want to marry Bella and bring her to Texas with me. I want to be a father to Bridie and Eamon. I want to live the life I never dreamed was possible."

Elizabeth grinned at her grandson. He was so much like her Edward in so many ways. A good and kind man who was born into money but never really felt comfortable with it.

"Well then," Elizabeth said with a twinkle in her eye as she grabbed her cane and stood. "Have I got a ring for you."

* * *

 **A/N** : Hello everyone! Is anyone else happy that Christmas is over? I took down our tree a couple days after the 25th because it was dry and dead and I wanted the house back in order. I never wait until Epiphany but, then again, Christmas starts much earlier these days. Thank you all for reading and reviewing and to **SunflowerFran** for her Beta work.


	8. Chapter 8

**The Christmas Visitor ~ Chapter Eight**

Glossary

 _Nollaig na mBan_ : Little Christmas/Women's Christmas/Feast of the Epiphany

 _Dáil Éireann_ : Assembly of Ireland

Flags: flagstone flooring

RIC: Royal Irish Constabulary

 **County Cork, Ireland**

 _ **January - March 1919**_

It took Edward seventy days to convince Bella to marry him.

Seventy days of him looking, daily, at the ring his grandmother had given him.

The morning of January 7th, the day after Nollaig na mBan, Eamon's fever was back. By the end of the day, Bella and Bridie were also sick. It took ten days for the illness to pass. Edward was thankful that he didn't succumb, but he did try to send his grandmother back to her sister's home in Cobh until he could be sure the house was safe. Elizabeth refused to leave and hired Mrs. Hale, a local charwoman, and Rosalie's mother, to cook for them and clean all the linens until Bella fully recovered.

Bella couldn't remember having ever been so ill. There were times when her skin felt like it was on fire, and times when she felt she would die of the cold. Whole days passed where she was delirious. Often she would get out of bed trying to get back to work until Edward could convince her that she was too ill.

Later on, she had no memory of these episodes.

Eamon, at only four-years-old, proved to be a good little helper for Edward once his own illness had passed. The two of them would sit beside Bella and Bridie for hours to keep cool cloths on their heads. He was always willing to run and fetch whatever Edward needed. Sometimes, Edward would tell him versions of the cowboy and indian stories he had read as a child; about Billy the Kid, Buffalo Bill, Butch Cassidy, and Wild Bill Hickok.

Memories of his own childhood resurfaced. Memories of when his father would tell him stories about all the wild outlaw men of the west. He had forgotten that there was a time when his father had also wanted to be a cowboy, but then ended up as part of Chicago society. Maybe he wouldn't be so upset about Edward moving to Texas after all.

Bridie's fever broke first, and he moved her into a separate room to rest but not disturb her mother. Eamon took his job as caregiver for his sister very seriously until they both started getting cabin fever and fighting. Mrs. Hale said they were well enough to play if they were well enough to fight and marched them over to her daughter's house to play with her McCarty grandchildren.

Edward sat with Bella for days. When he wasn't holding a cool cloth to her forehead, he was holding her hand and talking to her. More than once he bent to her ear and whispered, "You need to get better because as soon as you will allow it, I'm going to marry you and take you to America with me."

The last time he said that Bella opened her eyes and looked at him. "Don't be daft," she said and then fell back asleep. But her eyes were clear, and he knew the danger had passed.

Elizabeth spent her time packing an old trunk full of things for Edward and Bella to take back to America, but she kept that information to herself.

In the end, Bella and her children spent three weeks in Lady Cullen's home. Edward didn't want them to leave, but Bella insisted they needed to go back and live their lives – and that he needed to live his.

She wouldn't even let him walk them home.

However, the next morning when she showed up for work he was in the kitchen waiting for her. He sent the children to the parlour to sit with his grandmother, and then he got down on one knee.

"Unless you're down there to wash the flags, Edward Cullen, I don't want to hear what you have to say," and she left the room.

But Edward smiled to himself because he saw how her eyes got wide when he first knelt down and how her cheeks pinked. He wasn't going to give up easily. He had fought in a war and managed to live through it – he could take whatever Bella was going to throw at him.

At the end of January, the Sinn Féiners were supposed to go to London and meet with the English Parliament but they didn't go. Instead, they stayed at home and made their own parliament in Dublin and called it Dáil Éireann. They even created their own Declaration of Independence. Two Royal Ireland Constabulary constables were killed in Tipperary and it was said to be the work of the Irish Republican Army. When Edward went with Emmett to the local pub, it was all people talked about.

On February 4th, Eamon de Valera, with what was believed to be the help of Michael Collins and some others, escaped from Lincoln Prison in England. The boys at the pub seemed to think this was the answer to all of Ireland's troubles.

One night, around the end of February, Edward overheard some of the boys at the pub talking about a Mrs. Eala and how she owed it to the cause to help out and hide some things for them. Edward had never seen Emmett stand up so quickly or look so fierce. He stormed over and pounded his fist on the table, but his voice was quiet and deadly.

"You shut your fecking cake-hole Devlin O'Doyle. You leave Bella out of this, you hear? If any of you so much as leave a turd on her property I'll come for you." Emmett turned to leave but then turned back to them. "And this isn't the place for you to be having this discussion you eejits, not with the RIC around."

Edward realized two things that night. The first was that he _really_ didn't want to stay in Ireland; the second was, that until that moment, he hadn't known Bella's last name. _Doesn't matter_ , he thought to himself as he bought another round for Emmett and himself, _she won't be keeping it_.

Emmett, for his part, tried not to laugh too hard at how lovesick his new friend was. At least, he kept it in until he got home and then he and Rosie had many a laugh. Rosie had been getting regular updates from her mother while she was working for Lady Cullen. It was better than any of the romance stories she read in the weeklies.

February turned into March. The highlight of Edward's day was always when Bella came to work. Her skin was pink from the walk in the cold, and it looked like it glowed against her dark hair. He missed her when she was gone. Since she didn't work on Sundays, he always accompanied his grandmother to church, that way he knew he would see her.

Bella, for her part, felt she was spending too much time thinking about her employer's grandson. She knew, without a doubt, that she was in love with him and she was both terrified that he wouldn't hurry up and go back to America already – and terrified that he would.

Then, one night, after _another_ day of long glances in the kitchen and much laughter and teasing between the two of them, and _another_ night of lying awake listening to gunfire, Edward jumped out of bed and ran to Bella's house, knocking hard at the door.

"Now you listen to me, Bella. You keep telling me I don't know what I want but I've spent my whole life knowing what I _didn't_ want but never figuring out what I did. I'm not going to leave you, Bridie and Eamon alone in a country where I have to listen to gunfire every night. If I have to, I will stay and hire you myself once Gran leaves just so I can see you and the children every day. But is that the life you want for yourself? A lonely life of stolen glances when we could be so much more to each other. Don't you want more? I love you, Bella. I love you, and I want a life with you, and I _know_ what I want."

Once his declaration was over, and Bella was fully awake standing at the door in her nightdress with tears running down her face, he kissed her. He kissed her with all the pent up passion he had been feeling for her for months. He kissed her with the years of loneliness behind him, the years when he never knew he could feel so much for one person. He kissed her until Eamon cried out from the cot, "Yay! I want to go to America and be a cowboy!

That was March 17th, 1919.

They were on the boat by the first of April.

* * *

 **A/N** : Well, this is it for our Cowboy/Fairy man and his Irish Bella... or is it? There will be an epilogue set in the future at some point (I have to write it first) but other than that their tale is done. Thanks so much for all your support and comments. Thanks, once again, to **SunflowerFran** who really believed in this story and encouraged me to continue writing it. I've currently started working on Double Stroller again but I want to have a couple chapters completed before I start posting again - hopefully I will see you all soon.


	9. Epilogue

**The Christmas Visitor – Epilogue**

Austerity measures were still in place for traveling, so even though Edward had wanted to sail them back to America first class, it just wasn't possible. A lot of the luxury liners weren't quite back to full form yet after years of war service. Bella didn't mind at all. In fact, sailing first class would have made her uncomfortable. After all the horror stories of traveling steerage, the room they had felt like luxury enough to Bella's sensible tastes. It was an adventure, and she felt safer and more loved than she had in years.

The excitement over seeing the Statue of Liberty and the Cunard Line dock quickly dissipated when a porter was shouting that he had a telegram for a Dr. Cullen. It was from Carlisle, Edward's father. There was a terrible flu in Chicago that had already killed hundreds of people, and he wanted them to go straight to Texas. Esme was terribly ill. It wasn't safe for them. He was sorry.

After a week onboard the ship, it felt weird to again be back on solid ground. They spent two nights in a hotel in New York City (consider this part of your honeymoon, Edward had said). They took the kids to the menagerie in Central Park and out for ice cream. The children fell asleep early each night, exhausted by this new world that was so different from anything they had ever known.

"Mam," Eamon had said, eyes wide with wonder. "I feel as though these buildings are going to fall down on top of me. Everything is so big."

When the children were asleep Edward and Bella came together with a fierce passion.

"I never knew," Edward had said on their last night in New York, as he held his bride in his arms. "I never knew there could be so much happiness in life."

"I never knew a man could love me more than his gun."

Edward laughed.

"Oh, my gun loves you just as much as I do."

They both dissolved into a fit of quiet laughter.

The train to Katy, Texas took two days. They were met at the station by Jasper and his own war bride, Alice, a fiery little French girl with jet black hair, icy blue eyes, and a swollen belly. Alice and Bella bonded right away over being outsiders in a new land.

They spent the summer of 1919 living on Jasper's ranch while looking for a home of their own in town. Esme had died before they reached Texas and Carlisle urged his son not to return to Chicago.

" _I am sick, son, but believe I shall recover. Please know that it was your mother's wish that you not return in case you too are infected. She was so happy to learn of your marriage and wished to meet her new daughter and grandchildren. We must hold on to our faith that she will meet them one day in the distant future. When I am well enough, I will come to Texas if that is acceptable to you and your wife. There is nothing left for me in Chicago without Esme, and I no longer wish to deal with sick people._ "

For the next couple of months, a correspondence between father and son sprung up that surprised them both. By the time Carlisle arrived in Texas, in September of 1919, Edward was eagerly awaiting seeing his father again.

~TCV~

It is Autumn, 1921. Bella tries to soothe the kicks in her belly while simultaneously fanning herself and holding onto the hand of little Elizabeth Esme, a toddler with more energy than any other child Bella has ever encountered.

 _After this baby_ , Bella thinks, _we really need to take a break._ And then she laughs at herself. She now understands why Emmett and Rose have so many children.

In the distance, Bella can hear a train, the train she is waiting for. Carlisle has spent the last four months in Ireland visiting his mother and helping her settle up her estate. Furniture from the big house on the hill has already arrived, and it still seems strange to Bella that the furniture she used to clean, now belongs to her.

The family now lives outside of Katy, closer to Jasper's ranch. Edward still works as a doctor, but both he and Carlisle wanted more land and to live the cowboy dream. They built a big house for their ever-expanding family and a smaller home nearby for Carlisle. He never did go back to doctoring when he moved to Texas, but Edward often tempts him into consulting on some of his harder cases. Otherwise, Carlisle is happy to stay close to Bella and the children, learn about horses and do research on growing crops. He can't decide between peanuts or rice.

"Mam!"

A shout from across the street alerted Bella to the rest of her family.

"I'm so glad we aren't late," Edward said as he kissed Bella's cheek.

While Bella still had a hard time with the intense Texas heat, Bridie and Eamon thrived in their new environment. Both were growing tall and brown from being outside all day. Edward had just picked them up from school so they could be at the train to meet their grandfather.

"Dad," Eamon said. "How are we going to fit all of these people into our house?"

Edward grinned. Eamon was trying hard to drop his Irish accent and adopt a more American speech. It wasn't taking long either, considering he spent as much of his free time helping Jasper on his ranch and copying his cool mannerisms.

"Oh, we will make it work somehow."

After that, they couldn't talk without yelling because the train was rolling into the station.

The first to disembark was Carlisle. He stood by the door and was helping a number of children out of the train car. Next came Rosalie, looking as beautiful as ever and holding a toddler of her own. Behind her came Emmett with a smile a mile wide.

"Look out Texas!" His voice boomed. "The MacCartys are here!"

* * *

 **A/N** : I am marking this story complete but I may be tempted to revisit these characters again one of these days so keep this story on alert. Thank you all for reading and your patience, support, and wonderful comments. Thanks so much to **SunflowerFran** for all her editing help and support.


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